Improvement in apparatus for treating ammonia



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Apparatus for TreatingAn'imunia.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JULES H. ELWERT, OF GENEVA, AND JEAN JACQUES MLLER PACK, OF BASEL,SWITZERLAND.

IMPROVEMENT IN APPARATUS FOR TREATING AMMONIA.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. l55,508, datedSeptember 29, 1874; application led October 18, 1872. f

To all 'whom t may concern:

Be it known that we, JULES HENRI EL- wERT, of Geneva, and JEAN J AoQUEsrML- LER PACK, of Basel, both in the Confederation of Switzerland, haveinvented an Improved Apparatus for Extracting Ammonia in the form ofLiquid Ammonia from Crude Ammoniacal Liquors, of which the following isa specification .This invention of an improved apparatus for extractingammonia in the form of liquid ammonia from crude ammoniacal liquorsconsists in an apparatus serving the purpose, at one operation, ofseparating the ammonia from gas-liquors, 85e., and condensing it into awhite liquid of any required strength.

Its advantages are these: First, that it furnishes at one operation ofdistillationa product perfectly white, which does not alter by time orexposure to the rays of the sun; second, that the apparatus, oncecharged, works continuously till the operation is finished, with noother care than the heating of the boiler employed; third, that thetubes for the passage of the ammoniacalgas do not get stopped up withnaphthaline or other solid hydrocarbons, as the new charge of liquidalways rinses out the tubes,

Theapparatus is composed as follows, referrin g to the -accompanyingdrawings, in which- Figure 1 is a plan; Fig. 2, longitudinal elevationin section through 1 2, Fig. l; Fig. y3,

Vend elevation in section through 3 4., Fig. 1;

Fig. 4, front elevation; Fig. 5, end elevation in section through 5 6,Fig. l; Fig. 6, back elevation; Fig. 7 diagram of apparatus developed.

The same letters refer to the same parts.

A is the boiler, of wrought-iron or suitable material, mounted over ahearth or fire-place. On the dome or upper part of this boiler isarranged the tube a a, which, passing upward for a certain distance, isthen turned downward, and enters through a tight joint into the boilerA', nearly to the bottom. It isthen carried along nearly the wholelength of the boiler A', and is pierced with numerous holes for theescape of the gas passing from the boiler A into the pipe or tube a c.0n the dome of the boiler A is adapted the tube b b, turned down .as asiphon, the other branch going to within thirty centimeters of thebottom of the vessel B, which is in communication with the boiler A -bythe tube l. On the cover of the vessel B is fixed the tube c, whichleads the aqueous ammoniacal vapors into the coil of the refrigerator G..The tube c, when it leaves the refrigerator, is carried to withintwenty centimeters of the bottom of the vessel D, which is fitted with'asafety-tube, d, and a cock, s, opening a communication by the tube pbetween the vessel D and the boiler A. In the vessel D are deposited theaqueous ammoniacal vapors condensed by the worm,while the ammoniacalvapor passes by the tube e to traverse the four. tubes in cast-iron, EE1 E2 E3, communicating with each other by the tubes fj'1 f2. These fourtubes open at each end, and are fitted with rims, so that each end maybe closed by tight-fittin g covers in castiron or other material. Fromthe tube E3 the ammoniacal vapors are carried by the leaden tube g intothe lead condensing-cistern G, fitted with a funnel-shaped safety-tube,h, and a cock for emptying at t. The bent tube c' takes thenon-condensed gas into the vessel H, also fitted with a tap foremptying, a fun nel-shaped safety-tube, j, and a tube, le, for the lastuncondensable portions of the gas, and by which it may be led away fromthe factory.

The crude ammoniacal liquors are introduced by the tube and cock q,which is in communication with a reservoir above the level of the boilerA. The capacity of the boiler A is one thousand liters-the quantity forone charge. To this is added the quantity of milk of lime, thrown in hotby the hole r, sufficient to decompose the ammoniacal salts in eachcharge.

The emptying of the boiler A into the boiler A is done by the tube andvalve m, Fig. 6. To clear the tube m of any matter which might choke it,the rod o is fitted in a stuffingbox, which allows it to be passed alongthe pipe without loss of any vapor or liquid. The boiler A is tted witha tube and valve, n, by means of which it can be emptied.

To prevent the formation of a vacuum in the boiler A, there is fitted onthe tube a a a small tube in connection with the vessel u 2 y italiaanswhich latter is fitted with the safety-tube and cock o.

rIhe vessel G is placed in a reservoir made of sheet-iron, F, containingcold water, or a cooling mixture, as the vessel G becomes otherwise warmby the absorption of the ammoniacal vapor by the water. On the face ofthe boiler A, about sixty centimeters from the bottom, a small hole ismade, whichis closed with a small wooden peg, by means of which it canAbe ascertained when the vapor of am- :monia has been driven off.

The action of the apparatus is as follows: The man-holes of the lboilerare closed; the

valve a of the boiler A is closed; the valve m is opened; therefrigerators C and F are filled with cold water; the tubes E El E? E3are packed or filled with freshly-burnt charV coal of soft wood, of thesize of nuts, (preferably the refuse from the bakers ovens,) the coversscrewed on, and luted with linseed meal. In the vessel G is placed sixtyto sixty-tive liters of pure water, and in the vessel H, by j, one and ahalf liter. After these preparations, the cock q being opened, onethousand liters of crude ammoniaeal liquor is runl into the boiler A,and at the same time, by the hole r, enough milk of lime to decomposethe ammonia in the one thousand liters. W hen the crude liquor, mixedwith the milk of lime, has run into the boiler A, the cock o, the valvem, and the hole r are closed, and the fire is lighted. As soon as thecontents of the boiler obtain the degree of ebullition, the air drivenout begins to bubble in the vessels Gand H, the boiler A and the tubesl) and c commence to heat, and when the tube c at the entrance to therefrigerator U is well hot the air has been expelled, and it is time tocharge the boiler A. The cock g is then opened. The condensation of theair, cooled by the liquor running into A', produces a vacuum, and theaspiration draws the surplus liquid in D along the tubes c and p intothe boiler A 5 at the same time the air enters by the tube d. The boilerA now1 charged with one thousand liters of crude liquor, the cock g isclosed, the cock v opened, and through the hole r the charge the boilerAl are well stirred with a baton, the hole r then closed, and the firemade active. The aqueous ammoniacal vapor in the boiler A, escaping bythe small apertures in the horizontal part of the pipe a a, agitates theliquor in the' boiler A', and rises charged with more ammonia from theliquid and richer in amlnoniacal vapor. The vapor passing by the tube binto the vessel B partially condenses or loses its aqueous vapor, andwith some of the ammoniacal salts deposits in the vessel B, from whenceit flows back to the boiler Al by the tube l. The concentrated vaporpasses by the tube c into the worm, where the aqueous vapor is entirelycondensed, retaining a por- A tion of the hydrocarbons, free ammonia,and i ammoniacal salts, and falls into the vessel D.

ithe pure ammoniacal vapor escapes from the last purifier by the pipe ginto the vessel G, where the pure water absorbs the vapor till theliquid has acquired the desired strength. The vapors not condensed inthe vessel G for instance, atmospheric air-escape by the `tube t', andthen pass into the liquid in the lvessel H, which absorbs the smallquantity of ammoniacal vapor escaping from G, and the last uncondensableportions pass by the tube k outside the factory.

During the operation, the refrigerator C and F must be kept constantlycooled to condense in the first vessel all the .nonammoniacal vapors,and to condense as much as possible of the ammoniacal vapor in thevessel G.

When the boiler A is discharged of its ammonia the liquid is let out bythe valve n, it is again charged from the 'boiler A', the cock o shut,as before, and the crude charge let into A. Again the aspiration drawsthe liquid from the vessel D by the tube p and the tube c, thus clearingaway any' deposit in the tubes at every time of charging the boiler.

During the time the boiler A is being charged, some-or all ofthecharcoal purifiers are repacked, and the li quid ammonia is drawn offfrom the vessels G and H and replaced with pure water, as before. If thewater used in G and H is not distilled water, the charge, when drawnfrom G and H, must be set aside to deposit the salts of lime, alum, andmagnesia 5 but with pure water the charge is ready for delivery at once.

The time occupied in the operation is from y four to live hours; theproduct of one thousand ,litersof crude liquors of 30 Baume is fromVvone hundred to one hundred and ten kilograms; white liquid ammonia,220 Baume.

of milk of lime is added. The contents of 1 We are aware that it is notnew to purify ammonia by means of charcoal. This, therefore, we do notclaim 3 nor do we claim any lapparatus for such purpose other than that-shown and described in the above specificay tion; but

Whatwe do claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The described combination of the boilers A A', their connecting-'tube a,perforated in part, as described, tube b, vessels B, C, D, E, F, G,

`and H, and their connections, all as shown,

and for the purpose set forth.

JULES HENRI ELW'ERT. JEAN JACQUES MULLER PACK. Witnesses;

L. MRIAN, H. SALATH.

